2 year old not talking When Toddler Talking is Delayed | SpeechNet Speech Pathology (2024)

A 2 year old not talking would be considered a late talking toddler. Late talkers are children 18 months to 3 years that are saying less words and sentences than children of the same age.

​A 2 year old may be not talking but is that a problem in early toddler development?

A 2 year old not talking is a reason to seek advice from a speech pathologist or a health professional. There is a lot of variation and reason for delayed toddler talking, however, if they are saying NO words at 2, it is a definite red flag for them being at risk of development and learning delays. Research suggest seek early intervention rather than taking the “wait and see” approach.

​In fact, if a child is saying less than 50 words at 2 years old AND not saying 2 word sentences they would definitely be considered delayed for their age. Late talking in toddlers can be the first warning signs of bigger problems (e.g., Autism, intellectual impairment, learning difficulties). Of course, they may be late bloomers however at this time research has not clearly been able to identify which late talking 2 year olds will “grow out of it” and which ones will have longer term problems. A professional speech pathology assessment with a speech pathology experienced in working with the very young children can help look at the factors to tease out these differences

How many words should a 2 year old say

By 24 months a child would have typically gone through a huge boost in the number of words they are saying (vocabulary burst).

5 Things to Consider if a 2 Year Old is Not Talking or Toddler Talking is Delayed

For a 2 year old not talking or not saying enough words, there are a number factors in relation to toddler talking that need to be considered. By 18 months, when the first big burst of spoken words generally occurs, a:

Ways to boost speech and language skill for 2 year olds not talking or those with delayed toddlers talking:

If you are concerned it is always advisable to see a child speech therapist or a health professional. There are a number of things to consider if a child is a late talker.

​Assessment of the areas know to delay or boost early toddler talking skills such as attention and listening skills, imitation skills can be screened for young children. Your parenting or carer speech style needs to be considered as well to ensure a child meets their full potential and to help them to start talking.

Take the First Step Today!

​It can be hard to know if all of these skills are on track for a child without a proper assessment by a speech pathologist. However affordable ONLINE PARENT TRAINING Courses can be great first steps to ensure you are doing all you can do during your play and interactions to provide an ideal toddler talking environment for your child.

​For example the FOCUS ON TODDLER TALK eLearning training course is action packed with how to check the levels and boost the skills known to be important to develop speech and language through play and everyday interactions. The course has 4 in-built assessments you can use to monitor your toddler’s development. Courses like this can be great for parents and busy professionals (teachers, child care workers, Nannies) as you can download it right now and begin boosting your skills immediately – continue to access the easy to listen to video information session and videos of Dr McMahon actually interacting and playing with children to demonstrate the play ideas.

The course is divided into 3 levels for the toddler talking age group –

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